Study: Interplay Between Dietary Intake, Gut Microbiota, and Metabolic Profile in Obese Adolescents: Sex-Dependent Differential Patterns

DOI: 10.1016/j.clnu.2022.10.009
Published: 21/10/2022

Here’s a summary of the research…

According to the World Health Organisation, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents has increased fivefold in recent years. This is a serious concern as obesity at childhood is often carried into adulthood and comes with risk of many diseases and mortality. Understanding which early interventions are most effective is of paramount importance.

The gut microbiome has been identified in literature as a key factor contributing to childhood obesity as it is involved in the absorption of calories, metabolism of carbohydrates, the production of short chain fatty acids and other mechanisms involved in weight gain. This study examines the relationship between dietary intake, gut microbiota and metabolism in the gut with obese adolescents, also looking patterns amongst sexes. The fecal gut microbiota, plasma metabolites as well as diet intake information were used as measures. The results showed that there were gender differences among overweight adolescents and adolescents who were not overweight in regards to their gut microbiota and fecal and plasma metabolites. There was also certain bacterias seen more prevalently in individuals who were not obese, such as a decreased presence of parabacteroides in obese females, which is a bacteria that contributes to weight loss by supporting the intestinal barrier and alleviating inflammation.

The intake of soy also showed to be negatively associated with the production of parabacteroides, and a reduced number of Phascolarctobacterium was also seen. Febal gut microbial analysis also showed presence of other substances such as xanthine and ornithine in both girls and boys, suggesting that this could be used as a clinical tool to predict obesity in girls and boys. Dysbiosis was also present in obese individuals.